Commercial cleaning bid template — Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA
Washington State’s workers’ comp is administered exclusively through L&I as a state-fund monopoly, and the per-hour assessment trips up every out-of-state BSC entering the Puget Sound market. The Microsoft, Amazon, and Boeing corridor from Redmond through Bellevue runs at tech-campus rates that bear no relation to a Tacoma Class B office building 30 miles south. Pricing both from the same labor assumption will make you uncompetitive in tech and thin in Tacoma.
Washington State Labor Cost Inputs
BLS OEWS May 2024 (SOC 37-2011) puts the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue MSA mean near $20/hr, median around $18. Washington’s state minimum wage is $16.66/hr as of January 2026 per Washington L&I. Seattle’s minimum is $20.76/hr for large employers as of 2025 per the Seattle Office of Labor Standards.
Burden math on a $19/hr Seattle base: FICA 7.65% = $1.45; FUTA/SUTA ~1.5% = $0.29; WA L&I workers’ comp approximately $1.10 per $100 payroll plus a per-hour assessment per the WA L&I rate schedule; health ~$3.50/hr; vacation ~5%. Burden: 27–32%, loaded rate near $24–$27/hr. See the wages breakdown for the Seattle MSA.
Sample Scope of Work: Class B Office Building
Hypothetical 50,000 sq ft Class B building in Bellevue downtown or Seattle’s South Lake Union. Rain and mud tracking from October through May is the defining seasonal scope driver.
| Task | Frequency | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Restroom service + restock | 5x/week | Full Monday detail; tech-tenant buildings often require fragrance-free products |
| Lobby and elevator service | 5x/week + midday pass | Rain tracking Oct–May; daily wet-mop entry; seismic strapping on carts |
| Entry mat exchange | 2x/week Oct–May; monthly Jun–Sep | Rain-season mat program as separate line item |
| Common-area vacuuming | 5x/week | HEPA required in life-sciences buildings; low-noise for early starts |
| Hard-floor auto-scrub | 2x/week | Polished concrete and stone tile prevalent in South Lake Union and Bellevue |
| Breakroom and kitchenette | 5x/week | Tech-campus kitchens are larger; more surface area per tenant than traditional offices |
| Conference room reset | 5x/week | Whiteboard, AV equipment, glass table; LEED building green product spec |
| Day-porter coverage (5 hr) | 5x/week | Rain-season mat management and lobby pass critical Oct–May |
| Carpet extraction (full) | 2x/year | Separate bid line item; spring and fall cycles |
Seattle Going Rates: What Buildings Pay in 2026
Downtown Seattle and South Lake Union Class B commands $0.15–$0.22/sq ft/month for 5x/week. Bellevue downtown Class B: $0.14–$0.20. Redmond and Kirkland tech-corridor Class B: $0.12–$0.18. Tacoma Class B: $0.09–$0.13. Day-porter bill rate: $25/hr x 2.4 = approximately $60/hr; 5-hr/day porter near $1,500/month. Use the per-clean vs. hourly calculator. Medical adds +25–40%; life-sciences +35–55%; post-construction +40–60%.
Washington State Licensing Requirements
Washington requires a Washington State business license and a UBI number. Seattle requires a Business License Tax Certificate. GL minimum is $1M/$2M; Amazon/Microsoft campus work requires $2M/$5M and often a $10M umbrella. Workers’ comp is mandatory through Washington L&I’s state fund, with no private carrier alternative.
SEIU-USWW Presence and Prevailing Wage
SEIU-USWW covers most Class A commercial office in downtown Seattle and South Lake Union. USWW scale runs $2–$4/hr above BLS mean with health and pension. Washington’s prevailing wage covers publicly funded janitorial contracts; rates at WA L&I prevailing wage. Federal contracts fall under the SCA; pull the Washington wage determination from SAM.gov. Full SCA guidance: dol.gov/agencies/whd/government-contracts/sca.
What Seattle Buyers Expect in a Bid
- Monthly base service: hours x loaded rate; USWW scale vs. non-union shown as separate scenarios.
- Rain-season mat supplement: mat exchange labor and storage as a separate line for October–May.
- Green product spec: King County Green Building requirements and LEED documentation for certified buildings.
- Equipment depreciation: 36–48 months; HEPA vacuums, seismic-strapped carts, and rain-season floor machines.
- Insurance and overhead: GL, L&I assessment, bond, and 13–19% indirect.
- Profit margin: 8–14%. Tech-campus accounts require more onboarding compliance; price it in.
Bid Walk Checklist: Seattle MSA
- Confirm L&I per-hour assessment rate for the risk class; out-of-state BSCs frequently miscalculate Washington workers’ comp.
- Confirm entry mat program for October–May; rain tracking is the biggest seasonal scope item in the Seattle market.
- Verify seismic strapping requirements on rolling equipment; hospital and life-sciences buildings require compliance.
- Ask about LEED or WELL certification tier; product specs differ by level.
- For tech-campus accounts, confirm crew badging requirements; Amazon and Microsoft each have multi-week onboarding protocols.
The L&I Per-Hour Trap
Washington workers’ comp is not a flat percentage of payroll like most states. It is a per-hour assessment that varies by risk class, employer experience factor, and worker type. An out-of-state BSC modeling Washington labor at 1.1% of payroll will miss hours-based surcharges on overtime and split-shift work. Model every Washington bid using the actual L&I rate lookup for risk class 6602, not a national percentage assumption.
Primary Sources
- BLS OEWS SOC 37-2011 (Janitors and Cleaners)
- Washington L&I, Minimum Wage
- Washington L&I, Workers’ Comp Rates and Risk Classes
- Seattle Office of Labor Standards, Minimum Wage
- US DOL, Service Contract Act
- SAM.gov, SCA Wage Determinations
Model L&I per-hour costs precisely with the Opora bid generator. For Amazon and Microsoft tech-campus accounts, use the scope-of-work generator. For Swedish and UW Medical Center accounts, see the healthcare cleaning hub. Audit account profitability with the account profitability auditor.
By the Opora Editorial Team · Last updated: 2026